Merge's Blog

Tag Archives: discipline

If you want to be productive, to get things done, then you need to manage distractions. And one of the biggest distractions that we all face – the Internet! Which brings me to today’s strategy in our series on productivity tools for leaders: designate Internet-free times each day or week.

Avoid the “Squirrel syndrome” by designating Internet-free times

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Now don’t get me wrong, I love the Internet. I mean where else can you look up the menu at a restaurant, watch cute cat videos, and unequivocally shut down bar arguments on stupid subjects. Nowhere else but the Internet!

But once you get on the Net, it’s kind of like going down the rabbit hole. Continue reading →

In my last two video blogs on productivity tools for leaders, I’ve focused on specific ideas to overcome procrastination. So today, I’d like to give you one more idea on this topic. If you’ve been putting off tasks on your to-do list because they feel so large that they are overwhelming, or because it’s something you just really don’t want to do, then overcome procrastination by scheduling them into 25-minute blocks.

Tackle unappealing tasks by scheduling them into 25-minute blocks

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Research shows that 25-30 minutes feels manageable and attainable to most people. Half a day, or even an hour may feel intolerable, but we can do anything for 30 minutes. So schedule difficult or unappealing tasks into 25 minute increments with a five minute break in between. Continue reading →

In my last instalment in our series on productivity tools for leaders, I shared a tip on overcoming procrastination. Go public got such positive feedback that I decided to share a couple more in our next two videos. Today’s idea on overcoming procrastination is take advantage of the Zeigarnik effect.

Use the Zeigarnik Effect to your advantage

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The Zeigarnik effect, so called because it was observed by Russian psychologist Bluma Zeigarnik, states that people remember uncompleted or interrupted tasks better than completed tasks. Continue reading →

Are you guilty of procrastination? If so, you’re not alone. Strategy #7 in our ongoing series about productivity tools for leaders is a tip on how to overcome procrastination.

As a leader, you’re constantly juggling many priorities, and there are always a few items on the to-do list that seem to slip from one list to the next. Usually, the procrastination is either because the task is so large that the even the thought of tackling it is overwhelming. Or it’s because the task is just something that you don’t really want to do. Either way, the end result of procrastination is that the task gets pushed further out into the future. And sometimes it simply just doesn’t get done. So the idea I want to give you today to overcome procrastination is “Go public!” Let me explain.

“Go public” to overcome procrastination

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When I say “Go public”, what I mean is that you should publicize your time frame. In other words, establish a deadline and then tell others. If you announce to your colleagues that you’ll have a first draft completed by Thursday, your credibility is now at stake and you’ve just made yourself accountable for action. So tell your client that you’ll have a proposal to them by Monday afternoon. Or commit to getting a report to your boss before you leave that day. When you publicly voice a deadline, you have given yourself a powerful motivator to overcome procrastination. This approach works superbly if you have a tendency to get easily distracted. So try it. And let me know how it works! Share your success (or failure) by adding your comments below.

If you’re finding this series on productivity tools for leaders to be helpful, here are the links to previous instalments that focused specifically on making meetings more productive:

Brand-new video series for 2020

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I’m so excited to kick-off another brand-new video series for 2020. For the last few years, I’ve focused on a different subject each year. Last year the topic was “How to develop and grow your people” – we did 25 videos. And in 2018, we put out 33 specific tips on how to motivate your employees. So this year, I’m going to focus on … drum roll please … Productivity tools for leaders.

In my leadership training and mentoring practice, a frequent refrain I hear from my clients is that they start their days with the best of intentions only to get to the end feeling like they’ve gotten nothing substantial accomplished. So you tell me. Have you ever felt that a full day has gone by, yet time seems to have escaped you? Or that instead of checking things off your to-do list, it seems to be longer than it was at the beginning of the day? If so, then I think that this year’s video series is tailor-made for you. Continue reading →

Distractions are, unfortunately, a reality in our professional lives nowadays. In fact, I’ve previously blogged about how often we lose focus at work by the well-known (and notorious) “squirrel” and I’ve subsequently asked you how you minimize distractions and stay disciplined. Which is why I am thrilled to welcome our guest blogger today. Mark Black is my professional colleague and my friend, but he was also only 24 when he found himself lying in a hospital bed clinging to life, praying for a life-saving heart and double-lung transplant. Three short years later, he was crossing the finish line of his first of four marathons. So if anyone can give us practical advice on how to stay disciplined, manage distractions, and help us build resilience so that we can thrive in challenging times, it is Mark!

“Stay disciplined” may not be popular, but it works!

What do you think of when you read the word “discipline? If you are like many people, it probably brings up negative emotions. When most of us think of discipline, we think of experiences from our childhood where our parents “disciplined” us. It’s no wonder then, that most of us associate it with punishment and have a negative impression of it. That’s too bad.

Discipline is actually a very positive word. If you look at its origins, the word discipline comes from the Latin word “disciplina” which means: “”instruction given, teaching, learning, knowledge”. To be disciplined then, means to be someone who accepts teaching and seeks learning and knowledge. Sounds good to me.Continue reading →